Hydraulic and earth engineering – Miscellaneous
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-18
2002-07-02
Will, Thomas B. (Department: 3673)
Hydraulic and earth engineering
Miscellaneous
C405S259100, C175S052000, C173S038000, C173S039000, C081S055000, C029S809000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06413019
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a rock bolting device for drilling holes and setting bolts into the drilled holes. More particularly, it is for a rock bolter having dual feed tracks which are mounted on a turret which selectively rotates the feed tracks to a work position where they are sequentially utilized for bolt hole drilling and bolt setting.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A variety of rock bolters have been developed to drill holes and set bolts to stabilize rock walls. These rock bolters can be subdivided into single feed track and dual feed track rock bolters. U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,279 discloses a single feed shell rock bolter where a rock drill and a bolt driver are sequentially fed on to the feed track, which forms a work position for the rock drill or the bolt driver. Either the rock drill or the bolt driver, depending on which is positioned on the feed shell, can be advanced to a rock surface into which a bolt is to be set. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,473,325 and 4,497,378 disclose a dual feed track rock bolter. One of the feed tracks directs a rock drill as it advances toward a rock surface into which the bolt is to be set, while the other feed track directs a bolt driver as it is advanced toward the rock surface to set the bolt. The dual feed tracks are sequentially rotated to a work position and, when so positioned, the rock drill or bolt driver residing thereon can be advanced to the rock surface.
All of these rock bolters employ a stinger which engages the rock surface to stabilize the track(s) on which the rock drill and/or the bolt driver resides as they are advanced to the rock surface into which bolt holes are to be drilled and into which the bolts are to be set. One of the problems with bolt setting is locating the hole which has been drilled. A centralizer is preferably employed, which swings over the hole which has been drilled to guide the bolt as it is advanced toward the bolt hole to reduce the problem of locating the bolt hole. One difficulty with these types of bolt aligning systems is that of accurately positioning the centralizer with respect to the hole into which the bolt is to be set. This problem has been overcome by employing a common stinger/centralizer that is the subject matter of U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,235, which is assigned to the assignee of the present application.
Another complicating factor in drilling holes and inserting bolts into a rock surface is that frequently the rock surface into which bolts are being set is uneven. This severely limits the ability to position the rock bolter in close proximity to the rock surface and limits the work space available for movement of components of the rock bolter which reside near the rock surface when the rock bolter is positioned to set bolts. These problems are addressed in the '235 patent by employing a single stationary feed shell in combination with a magazine that is set back from the rock surface, which advances each bolt toward the rock surface as the bolt moves to the magazine position where it is to be picked up by the bolt driver. While this approach reduces the space required by the rock bolter in the vicinity of the rock surface, one difficulty with this approach is that the bolts are subject to transverse forces as they are advanced in the magazine, which can result in bending the bolts.
Another problem, which can occur when drilling into a friable rock, is that rock chips can fall into and impair the operation of the transfer and locking system which is used to transfer and secure the rock drill and the bolt driver on the feed track. This latter problem can be reduced by employing a turret dual feed track system such as is disclosed in the '325 and the '378 patents. However, the turret of the '325 patent is designed such that the feed tracks are in close proximity to the rock surface into which the bolts are set at all times during the rock drilling and bolt setting operations. This close proximity of the feed tracks sweeps out a large area of the rock surface and would not be effective for use with uneven rock surfaces. This problem has been reduced by the '378 patent, which teaches translating the turret along the work axis, allowing the turret to rotate when the feed tracks are more generously spaced from the rock surface. However, this additional clearance is obtained at the expense of increased complexity and increased length of the rock bolter. This increase in size complicates operation when operating in a mine shaft, and may prohibit operation in smaller shafts.
Thus, there is a need for a rock bolter that is compact and capable of readily drilling holes and setting bolts in uneven and friable rock surfaces.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a dual feed track rock bolter with a stinger/centralizer.
It is another object of the invention to provide a dual feed track rock bolter which requires a limited work space at the rock surface while maintaining a reasonably short overall length of the rock bolter.
It is another object of the invention to provide a compact dual feed track rock bolter utilizing a stinger/centralizer and employing a bolt magazine which rotates about a central magazine axis.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a supplementary stinger for a rock bolter that employs a stinger/centralizer which stabilizes the rock bolter as the stinger/centralizer is being disengaged from the rock surface.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide a drill steel retaining ring for a rock bolter employing a stinger/centralizer which focuses the motion of the drill steel tip to promote its engagement with the stinger/centralizer as the drill steel is advanced.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a stinger centralizer which has a first head arm and a second head arm, one of which is advanced on a path where its associated head element moves along a non-linear path as it advances toward and retracts from the rock surface.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dual feed track rock bolter having a bolt magazine which rotates about a central axis such that, when the turret is positioned with the rock drill feed track in the work position, the bolts in the magazine may be advanced into a position alignable with a bolt driver axis.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dual feed track rock bolter having a locking mechanism to immobilize whichever of the rock drill and the bolt driver is not positioned on the work axis.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dual feed track rock bolter having a frusto-conical bolt magazine.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dual feed track rock bolter having bolt-engaging hands which maintain a bolt, which is initially substantially in line with the bolt driver axis, so aligned while the bolt driver feed track is swung into the work position.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention, in a rudimentary form, provides a dual feed track rock bolter which has a stinger/centralizer symmetrically disposed about a work axis along which both a drill steel and a rock bolt are sequentially advanced. The dual feed track rock bolter has a drill feed track, which is traversed by a rock drill having an associated drill axis and carrying the drill steel aligned with the drill axis, and a bolt driver feed track, which is traversed by a bolt driver having an associated bolt driver axis and carrying the bolt aligned with the bolt driver axis. Both of the feed tracks are mounted on a turret which in turn is rotatably mounted to a base which also supports the stinger/centralizer. The base in turn is attached to a boom which is attached to a carrier vehicle, the boom serving to position the base and turret with respect to a rock surface into which the bolt is to be set.
The turret rotates about a turret axis which is parallel to but displaced from both the drill axis and the bolt driver axis. The turret is rotatable between a drilling position, where the drill feed track resides in a
Bigoney Paul R.
Coombs Perry L.
Morrison Ward D.
Mayo Tara L.
Oldenburg Cannon, Inc.
Semprebon Jeffrey E.
Weins Michael J.
Will Thomas B.
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